He earned a doctorate from the Chiropractic Institute of New York and served in the U.S. Army medical corps during the Vietnam War. He owned a gas station for 18 years in Brooklyn. He was a South Shore Little League baseball coach. And, most notably, he served for a quarter of a century at St. Joseph by-the-Sea High School – first as boys' basketball coach and then as athletic director.

Unfortunately for Alegre, none of those experiences prepared him for owning a restaurant on the Jersey Shore.

"This is a new learning process for me. It's a different animal," said Alegre while taking a rare break from supervising the hustle and bustle of Woodies Too, a family-oriented restaurant located in the Beach Haven Gardens section of Long Beach Island (LBI).

"I know retail from having owned (Bay Ridge Hess gas station in Brooklyn, from 1972-90). But there's more to do, things like quality control. You have to constantly stay on top of what's needed," he said.

Alegre ventured into the business after he retired as Sea's athletic director following the 2009-10 school year.

"I'm not the type to sit at home and do nothing, and I don't play golf," said Alegre, who had patronized the restaurant for years during trips to LBI. "I had told the previous owner, who had coached briefly at Sea, that if he ever thought about selling to let me know."

Alegre eventually got the call, and bought one of the two Woodie's restaurants the previous owner had on LBI – the other is called Woodie's Drive-In, located eight miles away in the Ship Bottom section of town.

"I wanted to keep the Woodie's name because the place has always been known for having the best hamburgers on the Jersey Shore," said Alegre. He's continued that tradition under his stewardship. "It's because the meat is brought in fresh every morning, it's never frozen."

One thing that Alegre has stressed since taking over is that Woodie's Too is more than a simple hamburger joint. The menu includes hot dogs, chicken Parmesan, pizza, crab cakes, shrimp, flounder, filet mignon and – his personal favorite – lobster tails. They even had an order of 288 chicken wings once.

"We have seating for 100 inside (with room for another 10 outside, limited because of a township ordinance), but 25 percent of our business is take-out," said Alegre. "Many of the people who are out here are tourists who rent houses for the summer, so they just call up and take the food back home and eat it there."

Speaking of home, Alegre currently splits his residency between Prince's Bay (where he's lived for over 30 years) and a house in Manahawkin, located 10 minutes from the restaurant, which is open from March to November. He lives primarily in New Jersey during that span; his wife, Cathy, the bursar at St. Joseph by-the-Sea, joins him on weekends during the school year before spending more time in Manahawkin during the summer.

The business, itself, is a family affair. Aside from the couple, the restaurant is co-owned by the couple's 36-year-old son, Chris, a Wall Street trader, who pitches in and helps out on weekends. Their other son, Robert, a physical therapist, has two daughters working at Woodies Too – 18-year-old Sarah and 14-year-old Katie. "Although I lose Sarah in August when she leaves for Old Dominion University," said her proud grandfather.

Prince's Bay resident Bob Alegre spends his summers at Woodies Too, a family-oriented restaurant he owns which is located in the Beach Haven Gardens section of Long Beach Island (LBI).
(Photo Courtesy of Bob Alegre)

LONG HOURS

Despite all the assistance, Alegre is at the establishment from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. most days (business hours are 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.). While he's had some health issues (including quadruple bypass heart surgery just over two years ago), he is a constant presence in the kitchen, dining room and even at the cash register. "When I first said yes to this, my wife was worried if I'd be able to do it," he said. "But I feel good. When I need a break, I can go into my office."

Seeing plenty of friendly, familiar faces helps the day pass quicker. "I had 10 Staten Islanders in here just the other day," said Alegre, who is often visited by former players, old coaching rivals, and current and former Sea teachers.

For those concerned about the stereotypical Jersey Shore craziness at the restaurant, "there's a no-nonsense policy here in town when it comes to rowdiness," assured Alegre, whose casual, cozy restaurant often has 1950s and '60s music wafting through the air, along with the smell of burgers on the grill. "We mostly get families and adult couples."